Category: Geek Love

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Geek Love

Ninja-like Skills for SEO…

Kick SEO *ss - Ninja SEO School! I’ve been keeping a secret from you. Nothing bad. Or illegal. No, nothing like that. I’ve been holding out on one of the most awesome SEO* resources out there. Seriously, Naomi is amazing.

I first discovered Naomi & her Ninja SEO School at the beginning of the year. I wavered on picking up a copy. Google is already my minion, so I didn’t think I needed it at first. But then the more I thought about it, the more I realized that I really should check it out. After all, I go through people’s blogs top to bottom to help them with their SEO, so I should actually read everything I possibly can on the subject. Then I saw Naomi’s name popping up all over the place, and I finally gave in and bought it.

I haven’t regretted that choice for a single moment. If you could stand to have your SEO whipped into shape, and you don’t have the money to get a private consultation (great gobs of money if you don’t want to do a workshop for thousands of dollars), it is worth every penny you spend on it. Need more justification? It is currently $39. That is like 8 visits to Starbucks. Fancy coffee or more eyes on your site turning into more business for you? Yeah, that is what I thought — go ahead and click here. (If you’re really scared, it has a 100% guarantee from Naomi, so you’re pretty much golden.)

Between Ninja SEO School and using Scribe to make SEO copywriting simple, my traffic has been higher than ever before. SEO for the win! (Psst… when I was done with the SEO School, I picked up the Click here to view more details as well. It is just as awesome! Worth checking out. After you finish SEO school, that is.

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Geek Love

Kindle vs the iPad – 3 Reasons Why the Kindle Wins!

Have I mentioned that I live in Geektopia? I do. And as a gadget junkie, I have both a Kindle (the original wedge-shaped one) and an iPad (64gb WiFi only). When the iPad was coming out, I heard many people say that they weren’t going to get a Kindle or another similar electronic book device because they would use the iPad for it.

I’ve tried both. And as much as I love the iPad, it doesn’t beat out the Kindle in this area.

– The Kindle is lighter in weight, making it much easier to hold and read for long periods of time. I’ve read mine for 8+ hour stretches before, and I could never hold an iPad for that long.
– The Kindle is not backlight, so it is easier on your eyes. If you’re like me, reading a backlit device for several pages of content is painful. I can’t read books on a computer monitor either and even taking a Outback Vision Protocol treatment to improve my eyes for this reason, since I have been using glasses for a long time.
– Since the Kindle isn’t backlit and has a matte screen, you can use it outdoors on a bright, sunny day. I tried to read a book on the iPad in the car (while Mike drove, of course!) and I couldn’t even see the screen.

Bonus reason:
– Kindle books can be ported to several different devices – I can read the same book on my Kindle and through the Kindle app on the iPad, the iPhone, my Mac and our PC. My Kindle books can go to many electronic devices – and books from the iBook store can only be read on the iPad. (Not necessarily a perk for the Kindle device so much as for the service itself over Apple’s new iBook store.)

I love my iPad, and the Kindle app that is available for the iPad is fantastic. Much, much better than the iPhone app. But when you find me curled up with a good book to read, it will be with a Kindle in my hands.

Side note about the Kindle: I love paper books. I really do, and I honestly thought that the design and development of Kindle would never be as good as reading a real book. Then I tried one out, and I discovered that it is lightweight and so much easier for me to hold – I have a weak right hand and problems with my thumb. I’ve read more books since I purchased my Kindle in 2008 then I did in the 5 years before that because using the Kindle is such a pleasant experience. I almost forget the books are electronic once I get in to them because the digital ink technology is so impressive. If you haven’t gotten your hands on a Kindle yet, you should!

Knitting books are the one exception. They just don’t translate well to the Kindle at all. I also tend to purchase books written by anyone I meet and get them signed for my collection!

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Geek Love

My Beloved iPad…

As a destination wedding & boudoir photographer, I had a justification for an iPad as soon as they were announced because I knew it would be a great way to constantly carry my portfolio around, but I didn’t pre-order one. Even as a die-hard gadget junkie, I wanted to get my hands on one first before I did it. Then Clint and others started talking on Twitter about how wonderful they were.

Before I knew it, I was up at the Apple store testing them out. True, they don’t have Flash. Whatever, Flash is so 2004 anyways – unless you’re a photographer. Oh wait, I am. But my blog is the first page you hit when you visit my wedding & lifestyle photography site and my boudoir site, and the Flash portfolio is tucked away inside. (I want my site to be as iPhone & iPad friendly as possible! Plus the search engines *love* it!) Of course, the iPad had only been out for a week or so, so the Apple store didn’t have any in stock. I added myself to the wait list for a 64gb iPad, and picked it up on April 22nd.

I opted to go with the WiFi version. I didn’t want to pay $130 extra for the 3G version, plus monthly fees for 3G access, and I already have a Sprint Overdrive with 4G access that I can link up to. Most of the time I have WiFi access anyways.

I’ve had it for three weeks now, and it is fabulous! It does actually fill a gap in my computer lineup for me because it can help me with a lot of stuff that I couldn´t do on my computer, I can now transcribe audio to text with a cool app.

– The battery lasts for 9-10 hours. My MacBookPro lasts maybe 1 hour, if I’m lucky.
– The Photo app is a GREAT way for a photographer to show off their portfolio. Or for a parent to show off photos of their kids.
– It is small and light weight. I can put it in a large purse or small bag. Easy to always have with me.
– The apps that have come up so far for the iPad are pretty fabulous. (I’ll be sharing my thoughts about them!)
– Being self-employed means I’m on my computer all the time. It is nice to put it away when I want to catch up on my RSS feeds, read Twitter, and play on Facebook.
– In the end, I opted for the 64gb so I’d have lots of space for photos and for music, videos & movies when I travel.

When I’m in the car on a road trip, my iPhone is still my go-to device. I tried out the iPad, but the larger surface just wasn’t good in the bright sunlight – I struggled to see the screen. I’ve never had that problem with my iPhone, or my Kindle for that matter.

Have an iPad? Thinking about getting one? What apps do you have & love? Which ones are you looking forward to getting?

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Geek Love

With my iPad, I can rule the world!

Testing out WordPress on the iPad. Yes, it is slower than my usual typing speed, but considering everything else I can do on it, I’m smitten.

More to come as I test things and figure it all out.

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Geek Love

Feed My Inbox – Tasty RSS Feeds, That Is!

RSS Feeds can make your life so much easier when it comes to reading blogs, but sometimes I don’t want to open mine because I know I’ll end up following breadcrumbs around the internet trail for hours on end. Yes, I’m definitely prone to the “Oh, Shiny! Sparkly!” distractions. So I don’t tempt fate if it is a busy production day – I just keep NetNewsWire closed.

But there are a small handful of blogs whose posts I absolutely do NOT want to miss. Some are industry trendsetters. One or two may be friends that I know will mention their latest post when we talk so I want to make sure I get it, and some are just things I want to keep a close eye on. I want to get those select feeds in my inbox, even when I don’t read all my other RSS subscriptions. I use FeedBurner, which offers this service (you can sign up to get my posts via email over in the far right column there … hint, hint). But not everyone uses FeedBurner, so this isn’t always an option.

I needed something else.

Then I found Feed My Inbox! Just like the name says, it will feed your inbox for you. All you have to do is give it the URL for the feed you want to subscribe to and your email address, click the link in the confirmation email, and then magically once a day you’ll get your most important RSS feeds right in your inbox.

The once a day is key – if someone writes 20 posts in a day, you’ll still only get one email.

Seriously, how cool is that? LOVE it! Hope you do too!

PS – Sorry about the site being down. We’re now on a zippy fast server, and the site shouldn’t fall over anymore like it has been the past week or so. Let me know if you see anything unusual, ok? We think we’ve got everything back where it belongs, but it is always possible to miss something!